PreLIFE
by Emperor of the Ricefields
Summary: People say that high school was the most fun time of their lives, and this was no different for Arata Kaizaki. He was a man who had an eventful history before entering the working world. However, it was his old friends and family who helped him push through the challenges he went through, turning him into the man he is today.


The bell rang and shook my senses back to reality.

I was standing in front of my high school building, about to take my first day of classes.

"Hey Arata! We're going to be late if you don't stop daydreaming!" someone shouted behind me.

Unsurprisingly, it was my friend and neighbor, Ma-kun who was running due to his habit of being late especially during cold mornings like this.

I then ran speedily and reached the classroom in time for the first period. Catching my breath, I entered the room labeled _1-C_ and saw an unfamiliar environment with equally unfamiliar people.

Most of my friends went to my own hometown's senior high school, Igashi East High School, but my parents insisted that I enroll in a private school in order to be able to improve myself in more ways than one. That's why Tokuzen Ichiban High School or better known as _Tokuichi _is my new home for the next three years.

The classroom definitely looked decent, compared to the ones I were used to, which was expected of a premier academic institution. It was a complete miracle that my parents were able to even afford this school, but I know that they only wanted what's best for me. With a spring to my step, I walked to the nearest empty chair and gently sat down.

However, someone tapped my shoulder from behind and when I looked back, I saw a young girl with short sable hair staring at me in disgust.

"Um. Excuse me? Why are you sitting in my chair?" she asked.

Embarrassed, I offered the seat back to her and apologized for the mishap.

"Sorry! I didn't know that this was yours!"

The girl then pointed at the blackboard wherein there was a piece of paper taped in place. It contained the seating arrangement for the class and so I facepalmed myself, regretting the fact that I started my year off with an act of stupidity. A short glance later and I was finally seated where I was assigned.

The final bell rang and my high school life had officially begun.

It was time for the introductions.

"Kaizaki Arata. _Ara_ for new and _ta_ for Tarou.* Nice to meet you all." I said with gusto which was followed by sparse clapping from my classmates.

_*Tarou (_太郎_) is a common suffix in Japanese male names which can also serve as a surname._

Then, a certain someone caught my eye, and she was the girl sitting right in front of me. She was going to give her own introduction.

"My name is Shibata. Shibata Rui. Hope to get along with all of you this year."

Her voice was like a gentle breeze flowing through my ears, and when I caught a glance at her face which was covered by her long hair, my heart skipped a beat. Her features resembled that of a goddess — divine and flawless.

Her skin as pale as the spring moon and eyes as hazel as freshly roasted chestnuts immediately urged me to fix my gaze at every fiber of her being.

She seemed popular because as soon as she sat down, people around me began to whisper discreetly. My guess is that she's the daughter of some big-shot businessman from Tokyo or something like that.

Then, there was the girl whose seat I mistook as mine. Compared to Shibata-san's, her features were pretty plain but make no mistake. They were in no way something to be scoffed at. She still had a cute face which was only soured by her stoic expression.

"Name's Yagami Keiko, but my friends call me Kei. Nice to meet cha."

She then sat back down and slouched back. The girl was a mystery of sorts and I'm usually a good judge of character from basing first impressions so she threw me off. Whoever she really was though, my instincts told me to stay far away from her.

"...and that's everyone. Good morning, everyone. I'm Kitano-sensei and you'll all be in my care for the rest of the year. Welcome to Tokuzen Ichiban High School."

A smart-looking man with glasses greeted us with a practiced smile as if he was already used to this routine. He didn't seem like a strict teacher but then again, I've been wrong before.

We began with morning classes. I know it's customary to start the academic school year with an opening ceremony, but in _Tokuichi_, things are a bit unorthodox. They join the opening ceremony with a special event that happens on the first week — the _culmination. _

From what I heard, the culmination is a battle royale to decide what kind of future you'll have for the next three years. It's the day when organizations fight to the death in order to recruit their newest members. There's also the infamous party that follows in the evening which is also known as one of the most fun yet chaotic events in the school.

"Kaizaki-san!" the shout jolted my senses a bit.

While I was busy daydreaming about future events, I was apparently being called by the teacher to answer a question on the board. Fortunately for me, math was my forté and not to blow my own horn, but you could even say that I was a master at it. As expected, my answer was correct.

"Very good. The first differential is usually the easiest one, but don't forget to add..."

he droned on through the lecture with his monotone voice.

In general, morning classes at this school were nothing special and I'm pretty sure what they're teaching here are topics that they teach any high schooler in Japan. What piqued my interest however is that at _Tokuichi_, there's something called as a _placement exam. _Instead of being ranked at the end of the semester with the smartest being at the top, this exam is supposed to judge the specialty of each student in order to prepare him or her in the world of professionals and careers.

This is partly why I wanted to enter this school. I honestly have no idea what to do with my life once I graduate.

I then began daydreaming again, and before I knew it, it was already lunch time. Stomach rumbling, I left the classroom to get some food to eat.

"Arata! Wanna have lunch together?" someone asked behind me.

As always, it turned out to be Ma-kun.

"Yeah, sure," I replied with a warm smile.

Onoya Makoto or as I call him, Ma-kun is my childhood friend, and I wouldn't be lying if I said that we were inseparable since birth. We have the same birthdays and soon after, his family moved to a house that was right beside my own. Now, he's enrolled at the same high school as me, although he has his own reasons of course. It's almost freaky how fate has bound us together all these years to be honest.

"Great! Let's go then," Ma-kun led the way.

We then both got what we wanted from the school cafeteria and sat down at the nearest vacant table.

"So how's it feel being in one of the most prestigious high schools in the country?" he asked me before stuffing a pork cutlet sandwich into his mouth.

I actually didn't feel anything special when I entered _Tokuichi_. Weird enough, I felt right at home. It felt like this place was where I truly belonged.

"It feels nice. I guess the private school life was something I dreamed of for a long time," I subtly lied.

Ma-kun swallowed his first bite before we caught up on past events during the spring vacation. He also shared his story about why he enrolled here as well. Apparently, he wanted to get into Tokyo University to study medicine, and he heard that being a _Tokuichi_ graduate increases the chances of being accepted by a lot.

"That's nice. At least you already have plans for the future," I said with a downcast expression.

I have always been like this — indecisive. Ever since, I never knew what I wanted to do so I had to rely on others to choose for me, but at this point, I'm trying to avoid letting others decide my future.

It was time to do things on my own.

Surprisingly, Ma-kun let off a huge burst of laughter, and I was left wondering why.

"Didn't you want to be my sister's husband when you grew up?" he jeered.

My cheeks immediately turned red from embarrassment after he said it, and so I shouted back at him.

"Shut up! That was a long time ago!"

To give some context, when I was young, I wanted to marry Ma-kun's older sister, Yuka since we were like two peas in a pod. Even if she was seven years older than me, we'd play make-believe almost every day. However, things change because she's currently an office worker in Tokyo, and she also has a fiancé.

"Man I missed teasing you like this! It's too bad we're in different classes this year," he said while pretending to be sad.

"Me, on the other hand, thank the gods above," I retorted.

With all the years we've spent together, he knew all my weak spots and bully me by exploiting them. Of course, matters of love were one of them.

"That's what I get for wearing my heart on my sleeve most of the time," I told myself and sighed in resignation.

Suddenly, my gaze shifted when Shibata-san walked by and entered my sight. I was then entranced by her aura of beauty.

"Oh. I get it. You like Rui-chan?" Ma-kun teasingly asked.

His words shocked me. How in the hell did he know her and why was he addressing her so casually? Don't tell me...

"In case you're wondering, I met her at a party way back when, and she was introduced to me by one of my old friends. We're not dating or anything of the sort. In fact, I barely know her."

Well that was surely a relief. I almost lost my cool and panicked there.

"So you know nothing about her?" I asked, quizzically.

Ma-kun then smiled which was the type that always gave me a bad feeling about what he was about to do next.

"Why don't we ask her directly instead?" he prompted.

In the back of my head, I was going to kill this guy.

"Wait. N—"

I was going to stop his crime against humanity in order to prevent my impending death, but unfortunately, it was already too late. He had run after her and they both exchanged greetings. Shortly after, I assumed Ma-kun was telling her to introduce herself to me since she was staring at me which made me sweat bullets.

When she began to walk towards me, I swear I almost passed out.

"Hello," I sheepishly greeted her.

"Ah. So you're _the_ Kaizaki-san. Onoya-san has told me quite a lot about you," she said with a bright smile.

Ma-kun, you bastard. What the hell did you tell her about me?

"Oh really? That's cool."

"Cool."

"So I heard that you met Ma-ku— I mean Onoya-san at a party before."

"Oh yeah. That was so long ago that I even barely remember it, but Onoya-san is still lively as ever."

"That's Onoya-san for you."

The conversation was getting more and more awkward by the second and so I decided to pull the brakes to save face.

"Well, it's nice seeing you Shibata-san. Hope we'll get along well as classmates."

"Please. Call me Rui. I don't like being referred to so formally," she insisted.

"No problem, Rui," I responded, followed by the driest laugh in human history.

She was about to walk away, and I was about to resume my breathing until she came back and asked to exchange email addresses.

"That was absolute hell," I said with my head face-flat on the table.

Of course, to add insult to injury, my dearest friend of mine decides to give some very helpful advice.

"Don't worry. I could tell that she was into you. You should talk to her more since you two are classmates after all."

"Gee thanks, master wingman. That went so smooth," I wailed with sarcasm.

It's a good thing there are no afternoon classes on the first day, but after lunch break, we had to return to our respective classrooms to decide our class council since they would be responsible for the events occurring on the first week. I'm an apolitical person so I generally stay away from things like this. However, I believe in the freedom of voting so I still participate as a voter at least.

"Good afternoon, class! No need to greet me anymore. Let's get this over with so that we can all go home," Kitano-sensei rushed inside and spoke what was on everyone's minds.

Nominations began first, and it was hard for people to nominate one another because we barely knew each other. Thanks to the handful who volunteered, the rest of us were spared a grisly fate.

"I volunteer to become the class president!" Rui stood up firmly in front of me while raising her right hand.

Everyone else in the room were exchanging glances and whispering which meant that her reputation really did precede her. I personally think she would be perfect as the class president so I really had no qualms with this situation.

With all nominees at the front of the class, voting was next and since each position only had one candidate, Kitano-sensei said that there was no need for a formal speech from each candidate. After all, the only choices were to vote them or abstain. However, something felt strange and I realized that it was because the vice president position was currently empty.

"Okay. Those who vote to abstain for Shibata-san as class president, please raise your right hands."

I was completely surprised to see that many of my classmates had eagerly raised their hands which broke my image of her as the popular student type. That's when I became genuinely curious about her true backstory.

"Since the majority didn't raise their hands, Shibata-san is now our new class president! Let's all congratulate her!" Kitano-sensei enthusiastically remarked.

Once again, barely anyone clapped and supported her which urged me to clap loudly for her sake. I noticed that she smiled at my gesture and mouthed out the words _Thank you. _

Am I dreaming right now?

"I choose Kaizaki Arata-san," a gentle voice woke me up from my awed state.

What?! Choose me as what?!

Suddenly, my classmates were in shambles, and I could hear the whispering getting even louder. Whatever just happened, it was not good.

Even Kitano-sensei was surprised and then, he said the words that would haunt me for life.

"There we have it class! Kaizaki-san is officially our vice president!"

XXX


End file.
